


I'll Be Fine

by Ghostinthehouse



Series: Demon and Angel Professors [147]
Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Professors, Disabled Crowley (Good Omens), Implied/Referenced Ableism, M/M, Misophonia, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:06:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28242861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ghostinthehouse/pseuds/Ghostinthehouse
Summary: The sound of voices made the student look up, and her heart sank further as she recognised the two professors wandering down the path towards her.One shot.
Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)
Series: Demon and Angel Professors [147]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1412962
Comments: 36
Kudos: 706





	I'll Be Fine

**Author's Note:**

> Just to note that there are now _over a thousand_ bookmarks for the profs as a series, and to thank all you incredible folk very much indeed. Your comments, kudos, etc have kept me going through a very rough year, and I hope this series has helped you in return.

Jane slid onto the bench she'd found in a corner of the grounds, far enough off the main paths that no one was likely to accidentally join her for lunch. There was a pond and more benches further down the path but those were a popular spot for picnics and the whole point was to get away from people. She rummaged in her bag for the packed lunch she'd brought. Her hands came up empty and she realised with a sinking feeling in her heart that she must have forgotten to put the box in her bag and there was no way to fit the hour's travel there and back into the half-hour she had left until her next lecture. She was going to have to go hungry until she got back to her home, but it was hardly the first time she'd done that. She hunched in on herself and tried to relax and listen to the birdsong.

The sound of voices made her look up, and her heart sank further, renewing its acquaintance with her boots as she recognised the two professors wandering down the path towards her. It was too late to do anything else but sit quietly and hope that they wouldn't notice her.

Her stomach growled, giving her away, and she felt her cheeks go warm with embarrassment.

Dr Fell stopped, and looked over at her, a small, friendly smile on his face. "Are you alright?"

Dr Crowley nodded civilly enough to her, laid a hand gently on Dr Fell's shoulder and murmured something in his ear. Dr Fell nodded almost absently. Dr Crowley nodded back, and then carried on down the path towards the pond.

Jane said, "I will be. I forgot my lunch, is all. Haven't time to go back for it."

"Oh." Dr Fell rocked a little on the balls of his feet. "I believe the breakroom has sandwiches and other things?"

She swallowed. "I can't."

"Oh?" Honest interest was written on his soft, round face. "A matter of money?" He was reaching for his pocket already.

"No!" she blurted out, in her haste to stop him. "There are...there are too many people eating in there already." She couldn't make herself explain that the problem was that they were eating. That's what the breakroom was for, after all. It wasn't their fault that her misophonia meant hearing people eat felt like someone was taking a cheesegrater to her nerves.

His face fell, and her insides twisted at the sight. He didn't get it, she could tell from his expression, and she hated to disappoint someone so kind. She braced to defend herself, her boundaries, and her needs.

(She was right, he didn't understand, not really, but he _was_ familiar with unpleasant reactions to things commonly considered innocuous, both on his own account and on Crowley's)

"Well," he said, with a small shrug, as he took her at her word. "That's no reason you should have to go hungry. That makes it harder to learn, after all." He pulled a sealed granola bar from his coat pocket and held it out. "Will this help, or would you like me to make a run through the crowd for you?"

It was as if he had done one of those magic tricks that involve trying to whip the tablecloth away without disturbing anything else. Only it was on her assumptions, and her expecting to have to fight for her needs. The lack of anything to brace herself against left her offbalance both mentally and emotionally, but she recognised the granola as one of the brands she could eat safely, and ingrained politeness made her mumble, "The bar is fine."

He smiled, and tossed it to her, and went on his way, while she fumbled to find her internal balance again. Was this, she wondered, what it was like to have her boundaries just - accepted? Without question or justification? Because if it was, she had to admit that she liked it.


End file.
